Trolls
Until recently the race of trolls have lived in isolation on a continent far to the north. Having salvaged superior sailing designs form a derilict trading vessel they expanded quickly into a string of isles far to the east of Bastion. Eventually these Isles rebelled and formed their own nation splitting the troll people into two factions, the Independent Isles and the Loyalists. Physical description Lifespan: Trolls can live up to 150 years. Although trolls reach physical maturity at 20 they do not become legally adults until they are 30. Skin Color: Skin color varies greatly amongst the Trolls but generally resides among 3 main hues. Light brown, grey and dark green. Height: 6 to 8 feet Tail: Trolls have thick tails that extends down from the bottom of their spine to about one foot longer than their lower body. They hairless except for a large tuff of fur on the end. These tails have the same flexibility as cat tails. Ears: Trolls have long floppy ears that have a small tuff of fur at the end of their pointed tips. Hair: Thick and strong as horse hair. Braids are an important part of troll culture details below. Face: Human like but rough by any standard. Trolls also have small tusks in place of lower incisors. Hands: Trolls only have 4 digits (3 fingers and 1 thumb). Although they are quite thick they are surprisingly nimble. Blood: Troll blood is a dark blue, almost purple. Inherent Advantages: All trolls have some level of Armor and cold resistance. This is paid for normally from the characters AP pool. Geography The main population of Trolls resides on a continent far to the north. It is a cold and bitter land, the summers are brief and the winters are harsh. There are two major cities. Balnor the capitol dug into the base of a dormant volcano, whose inner fire heats numerous hot springs and Selenor located on the southernmost tip of the southernmost peninsula the troll's only ice free deep water port. While these cities are large by any standard the majority of the trolls population is spread across the countryside. The troll colonies are located far to the south east of the troll homeland and reside on a string of islands seperated into four clusters, the Northern Isles, the Southern Isles, the Eastern Isles and the Western Isles. These island clusters surround the largest island Rokenor. Ancient History 700 years ago there was no unified Troll nation. Instead they were divided into dozens of clans which constantly fought over every imaginable slight. One day a troll named Baln came down from the frozen plains, a land so cold that no clan dared settle there. He was the first troll enchanter. How he came about this new and powerful form of magic no one knows but his skill was legendary. Baln was covered from head to toe with swirling tattoos. Baln claims that during his holy pilgrimage in the frozen plains the gods of Ice and Wind carved them into his skin as a sign of divine grace. Baln's ambition and greed knew no bounds. He used his power to set every clan against its neighbors bringing about a holocaust that lasted fifty years that left half of the trolls dead. Baln was so manipulative that by the end of those long and bloody fifty years every surviving clan thought that Baln was the wise mystic standing between them and the abyss. During this time Baln drove either exterminated the blood mages of the clans or drove their cults into hiding. These blasphemous cults are feared even to this day. It was then at the base of a mighty volcano that Baln gathered the remaining trolls. It was here that he united the clans extracting extracting oaths so powerful that legend says that the earth itself trembled. Baln organized the trolls under his regime and formed the caste system that exists to this very day. Baln ruled for the trolls with an iron fist for the next 60 years. He took the most beautiful of the trolls, a maiden named Selen as his bride and had seven children by her. During his rule Baln founded the two major Troll cities, the capitol Balnor founded at the volcano's base, the seat of his power. The second city he founded on the coast to be a commerce hub, Baln named it Selenor, after his wife. Baln taught the art of enchantment to his seven children, and the skill has never strayed from his blood line. The Caste system The hierarchy is broken down into five castes, one for each decade of the holocaust. enchanters are the ruling class and even the poorest of them live a life of luxury. Most enchanters marry amongst themselves and spilt but it is not unheard of for Enchanters to marry amongst their Primarium, teaching their favorite offspring the art of enchantment. |Primarium: These trolls can hold the social standing of low nobles. Members of the Primarium are expected to achieve some mastery of the lesser magic’s. (Any magic that is not enchantment is considered a lesser magic.) They also are the scholars and head priests. |Secondarium: These trolls make up the Military officers, merchants, businessmen, lesser priests and bureaucrats of troll society. They are often given charge of entire towns and villages. This is the highest caste that receives a formal education. |Tertius: These trolls are the craftsmen of troll society. They are noted for taking great pride in their skill. |Quartus: These trolls are the farmers, miners, fishermen, whalers, loggers, trappers, soldiers and unskilled workers. They are little more than slaves and are the lowest caste in troll society, they far outnumber the rest of the castes combined. It is possible for trolls to advance and fall within the hierarchy. It happens quite often between the the Tertius and Quartus. It is not unheard of for a clever Tertius to rise to Secondarium. It is however quiet rare for any troll to rise to Primarium from any lower caste. While it is impossible for any troll that is not the son or daughter of an enchanter to become one. Each enchanter is given an area of land to rule, any troll who lives within that area is bound to them. Culture Ideally Trolls are friendly to those of the same caste, respectful of those of a higher caste and kind to those below themselves. This is not true for many trolls likely not even for the majority. There are cruel masters, bitter rivals, and insolent slaves. All the sins that plague humanity also prey upon troll kind. If there are fewer criminals then it is only because the penalties for breaking the law are harsh and unforgiving. The favorite hobby amongst the trolls is knot tying. This has been true for as long troll history has been recorded. Many of their traditions revolve around various knots and their purposes. Teaching knots to children is a family activity that many a troll remembers fondly. When trolls dance the pattern they trace on the floor follows the patterns of various knots. Any clothing or decoration without some form of knot shown predominately on it is considered of the lowest quality despite how fine the material might be. Trolls do not have a written language as the other races would understand it. Instead they record their history on long strands of thin flexible fiber which they tie knots into. With each knot symbolizing a letter or word. There are two hundred knots in the troll language more if you count the slang used by the Quartus. They read these knots not by sight but by touch. Each troll wears a single braid down their back. This braid has several knots worked into it. Each one symbolizing caste, name, profession, where they live, lineage, marital status, how many children they have and much more. It is not uncommon for trolls who are meeting for the first time to introduce themselves by feeling each other’s braids. Troll religion revolves around worship of the gods of wind and ice. While enchanters are their chosen ones gifted with mastery over the mind. It is common belief that an enchanters have such power that they can completely dominate anyone they choose. That this domination is a holy blessing as it means that the god's chosen feels that you are worthy to experience their power. This belief is of course completely wrong but the enchanters know that this superstition is a powerful tool and use what power they have to encourage it. Even the Primarium subscribe to this school of thought. The strength of the religion is strongest in the cities; its influence lessens the farther you go from the population centers. Out in the far reaches of troll society the old ways are still followed, blood is still spilled for the enjoyment of demons and priests travel there only under heavy guard. Recent History Until seventy years ago the trolls were happily trolling away in the north completely ignorant of the existence of the other races. Their largest ocean craft were giant whaling canoes and those rarely left sight of land. That is until by some mischance a great galley crashed upon their shores. The craft's sailors had expired from some disease and their ship had wondered on the wind until it found the homeland of the trolls. The trolls were at first greatly confused. The corpses were completely alien and the ships hold was filled with strange goods and unreadable maps that hinted at vast unknown lands. A wave of curiosity swept over the troll people they were no longer alone. The first attempt to repair the galley proved disastrous and the second only slightly less so. The third attempt saw it sitting at the bottom of the ocean. Despite these failures it taught the troll ship wrights much and within a decade Selenor had its first ship yard producing sailing vessels as fast as could be constructed. Not only were they greatly superior for whaling they sped up trade, and allowed for the exploration of new lands. South the Trolls sailed colonizing uninhabited islands as they went. It took the trolls nearly 7 years to encounter another race, not because of the distance but because the trolls where exploring blindly. It turns out that they had explored far to the south east to these coast of these lands. The farthest southern troll settlements were as south as Bastion but a thousand miles to the east. These islands were seen as an opportunity for many of the “poorer” enchanters, as it offered them a chance to better their lot. They sent their people to toil on alien soils while they sat back and grew rich. It wasn’t a horrible life as long as one could withstand the heat, for the temperate climate of these isles was much warmer than the trolls were accustomed to. As such the island trolls wore only what clothes modesty demanded. This breech in decorum was quiet a scandal but as sugar cane and coco became pouring in from those islands (luxuries never before seen) the enchanters adopted a lassie faire attitude toward the island inhabitants. As long as the goods flowed northward they cared little for how it was done. The first race to be encountered by the expanding troll nation was the elves. The trolls found these short tree dwellers to be quite odd. When they brought this news to the enchanters it created quite a stir. Some wished to invade their new neighbors, as they thirsted for elvish lands and treasure. Thankfully for the trolls, the majority of the enchanters were not so blood thirsty. They argued that it would be better to open trade with these tree dwellers rather than invade unknown lands against a nation with unknown strength. It was a good thing that the calmer minds prevailed. The trolls were unaccustomed to any war larger than small skirmishes between quarrelling enchanters. Combine that with the larger number of elven mages and home field advantage the trolls would have found themselves slaughtered. So trade began between the two races. The elves valued trollish weaving, whale ivory and oil. While the trolls were fond of elvish timber and exotic fruits. This was only the beginning. Troll tradesmen quickly “discovered” the other nations and open up trade as well. For a while things were good. Trade flourished, the Troll nation grew fat off the backs of their island colonies and all was well. Until during the fifth year of the chimera wars the colonists rebelled. Without the direct influence of enchantment pressing upon their minds the colonies finally grew tired of sending a crippling amount of treasure back home for nothing in return. At first glance this seemed to be an extremely foolish act. There were scant few spell casters among their ranks and the trolls of their homeland outnumbered the colonists ten to one. It would have been a hopeless endeavor, except that the colonists had managed to seize the vast majority of the trading fleet in the first days of the conflict. The war was long and bloody as both sides seized the advantage from each other again and again. Blood mages from the far lands crept back into the heart of the troll nation promising power enough to destroy ones enemies to both sides. Although they were largely rejected, for the first time in hundreds of years demonic cults found homes in the heart of troll civilization. In the end the colonists won their independence but the victory tasted as bitter as defeat. Their proud fleet lay in tatters, villages destroyed and crops burned while the troll homeland remained virtually untouched by the ravages of war. The peace would not last the colonists new this, the homeland would rebuild their fleets and will eventually come to reclaim what was once theirs. While lacking the great forests of the north the colonists could not do the same. So the newly independent troll colonies began the long process of recovering and reestablishing trading ties with the other races. As the years past and the threat of their homeland began to loom the colonies decided to send diplomats to the other nations to request aid. Trolls and Magic Trollish enchanters are masters of enchantment without mortal peer. They view the other disciplines of magic as lesser arts and it has never been fully explored. They never developed an equivalent to elemental magic and have yet to have learned it in great numbers from the elves. The primarium instead usually only learn one or two of the elements separately. The new form of wizardry known as magecraft is virtually unknown and illusions are rarely ever used as more than entertainment for children. This is not because Trolls are less magically inclined than the other races or that they are racially predisposed toward enchantment but because the ruling enchanters recognized the threat powerful mages of other disciplines could pose to their rule and have subtly steered any other mage away from true mastery.